The first day of classes started with Sirius and Regulus both getting up early, and unable to sleep. Therefore, they decided to sit in the Gryffindor common room and talk for a while.
"So, what do you have today?" Sirius asked.
"Transfiguration, Charms, and Care of Magical Creatures," Regulus replied. "I'm really excited to see how Hagrid is as a teacher. He's always been really friendly, so I'm sure he'll be a great teacher!"
Sirius rolled his eyes. "Oh, Reg, if only you knew," he said with a sigh.
"What do you mean?" Regulus asked, not sure if he really wanted to know.
"Well, you see, in the future, Harry took Care of Magical Creatures starting in his third year," Sirius began, thinking back to what Harry had told him, and the Daily Prophet articles he had read regarding the situation with Lucius' spoiled brat of a son. "Harry told me that on his first day of Care of Magical Creatures, Hagrid introduced the class to a hippogriff."
"Now, that's cool!" Regulus exclaimed. "They are really cool creatures!"
"Yes, maybe so," Sirius agreed. "However, things did not go the way they were supposed to. You see, Hagrid told them the hippogriff's name was Buckbeak. He told everyone to bow to Buckbeak and wait for a response. You know, the way we're supposed to approach hippogriffs. Harry went first, and Buckbeak accepted him, and he even got to go on a little ride!"
"I don't see what's wrong with that! That would be so cool to get to ride on one!" Regulus stated excitedly. "So, what happened?"
"Well, after Harry's little flight on Buckbeak, Draco Malfoy, Lucius Malfoy's spoiled, rotten, bratty son, decided he would have a go," Sirius said bitterly.
"And?" Regulus pressed on, hating the suspense.
"Draco Malfoy did everything wrong," Sirius revealed. "He insulted Buckbeak. Therefore, well, he learned his lesson."
"I bet Buckbeak was mad," Regulus guessed.
"Oh, very much so," Sirius agreed. "In fact, Buckbeak scratched Draco's arm!"
Regulus doubled over in laughter.
"That is SO funny!" he gasped out. "He deserved it!"
"I agree, he did deserve it, but Draco went to the hospital wing, then called his father to complain to him," Sirius continued. "At least I know where Draco got his attitude from. When Lucius was still a student here, he always told people he'd tell his father that his 'father would be hearing about this.' Draco said the exact same thing, all the time, according to what Harry told me."
"So, what did his daddy do for him?" Regulus asked with a smirk.
"Lucius got the Ministry involved, and well, they had a hearing for Buckbeak, and you can probably guess what happened," Sirius said.
"They didn't, you know, kill Buckbeak, did they?" Regulus asked nervously.
"They were going to, but Harry and Hermione saved the day, but that's a story for another time," Sirius said, noticing the time. "Let's just say, I got to know Buckbeak very well, and Mother would have had a heart attack."
Regulus rolled his eyes. "Did you keep Buckbeak or something?"
"Yes," Sirius confirmed. "But we need to get ready for the day."
"Wait, one more question," Regulus said. "What did Dumbledore do? Did he defend Hagrid and Buckbeak?"
"They say he did, but he clearly didn't use his influence, because he could have easily swayed the Ministry, but he didn't. He had a lot of power back then," Sirius explained.
"So he didn't do anything?" Regulus asked.
"He might have done a little bit, but very little, and clearly not enough," Sirius responded. "If Grandfather had been Headmaster, he would have done more."
"Grandfather has a lot of influence too, so I think that if something like that were to happen now, he would be someone you wouldn't want to mess with," Regulus half-joked.
Sirius and Regulus got ready for the day. Regulus had Transfiguration and Charms, then after lunch, he had Care of Magical Creatures.
He was shocked to see one of the worst animal-haters in the class. Dolores Umbridge was in Care of Magical Creatures as well.
"Hello everyone!" Hagrid boomed as he came out of his hut. "Are we all here? Yes? Well then, let's get started! Today, we are going to talk about dragons. I even brought one for us to work with."
Regulus and Capella widened their eyes. Dragons were dangerous, and illegal. They realized that Hagrid had not told Arcturus about his lesson plan, because if he had, Arcturus would not have allowed it.
"Hem hem," Dolores broke the silence. "Dragons are illegal, you know. They are also very dangerous."
"Don't worry, they're harmless," Hagrid said reassuringly. No one was convinced. "Now then, who would like to come pet this little dragon, eh? Don't worry, he's harmless! He wouldn't hurt a fly."
Regulus remembered what Sirius had told him about Norbert, and wondered if Hagrid had named this dragon Norbert as well.
"I'll go first!" Dolores said loudly, running over to Norbert. "I will show this disgusting creature that it's no more than a fire-breathing danger to our world!" She then grabbed the dragon by the tail. The dragon was angry. "AAAAAH!" she screamed as the dragon breathed fire on her, burning through her robes and burning off pieces of skin from her right arm. She let go of the dragon, and started running back towards the castle. "YOU'LL REGRET THIS!" she shrieked as she ran off.
The class burst into laughter. "She deserved what she got!" Capella exclaimed.
"Er, well, class is dismissed," Hagrid said awkwardly. He knew full well that he needed to go see Arcturus immediately. Knowing Dolores Umbridge, she would not be quiet about this. As the class started heading back to the castle, Hagrid made his way to the headmaster's office.
"Hagrid, just the person I wanted to see," Arcturus said as Hagrid walked in. "I heard about your lesson today. Would you care to explain? I am most interested to know why you brought a dragon to this school without getting approval first. You do realize that dragons are dangerous, do you not?"
Hagrid looked nervous. "Yes, Headmaster Black sir, I know that, but I thought that with me there, I could protect the students from harm."
Arcturus leaned forward. "Hagrid, your heart is in the right place, and I know that you didn't mean any harm to any of the students, but the fact of the matter is, the Wizarding World won't be so forgiving. Miss Umbridge is already talking about writing to the Ministry of Magic and the Board of Governors. I have enough influence to keep you from being sacked or imprisoned, but I want you to understand that many will not be able to trust you. From now on, before you introduce a creature to your class, you need to let me know, so I can make sure you are teaching in a safe environment If it seems that a creature may be dangerous, either we will find ways to protect the students, or I will tell you to pick a different creature or perhaps a different way of teaching about that creature. Is that fair?"
"Yes, Headmaster Black sir. I apologize," Hagrid stated.
"Again, I understand that you didn't mean any harm, but many will not see it that way," Arcturus said. "I just hope that you will learn from this. I will do my best to keep you from being thrown into Azkaban, but I also need you to do your best to teach in a safe environment."
"Understood," Hagrid agreed. He then sighed. "Maybe I shouldn't have taken this job."
"Hagrid, you are the best person to fill the position of Care of Magical Creatures," Arcturus stated firmly. "I wouldn't have offered this position to you if I had any doubts about your qualifications. Just take this experience as a lesson learned." Hagrid nodded.
"Thanks for believing in me," Hagrid said.
"Of course, Hagrid. Of course," Arcturus replied. "Now, I need to write some letters to the Ministry of Magic and the Board of Governors. I would suggest you go find Learning About Dragons in the library. It has ways of teaching a class about dragons in a safe way." Hagrid nodded. He left the headmaster's office feeling better than he had when he had entered. He was grateful for Arcturus' support, and he just hoped that Arcturus' influence was as potent as it needed to be, but Hagrid '" also aware that he needed to change his teaching style, and if it meant keeping the students safe, he would do just that.